In the past, vacuum packaging of pre-cooked lobster has been considered practically impossible. The reason for this being that the horn of the lobster punctures through the package and breaks the seal of the package.
As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the horn of a lobster has a fine point oriented toward the front of the lobster. When packaging a lobster, the claws are generally brought together in the front of the lobster, thereby creating an empty space near the horn. This empty space represents an area where the wrapping material can pull up or down in a vacuum packaging process, thereby bringing the wrapping material against the tip of the horn, and puncturing the wrapping material.
In the past, some packers have tried to grind the horn off. This practice, however, has enjoyed limited success because the connoisseurs pointed out that any injury or a defect on a lobster casts a doubt as to whether the lobster was dead or alive when it was cooked. Therefore, a first requirement in the vacuum packaging of pre-cooked lobsters is that the lobster must be presented in its most natural state.